Protests with flaws

The ability to gather in protest is an American right more than two centuries old. In many ways, it differentiates our country from some others.

The ability to gather in protest is an American right more than two centuries old. In many ways, it differentiates our country from some others.

Protests have happened nationwide after the acquittal of Florida neighborhood watch coordinator George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.

Two such protests have happened in Stockton.

They have been loud - all good protests probably should be to make their point - and peaceful.

One thing has been troubling. In both protests, major Stockton streets were either shut down or had traffic impeded by protestors. That should not happen.

On July 16, three days after the Florida verdict, about 50 people gathered in front of City Hall to protest the Zimmerman verdict. Eventually, and multiple times, they moved into one of Stockton's busiest streets, El Dorado, and brought traffic to a halt.

On Saturday, a protest happened near Weberstown Mall. Police - clad in riot gear - closed Pacific Avenue. One man was arrested for refusing police instructions to not go in the road.

The potential for an accident - a car hitting a protestor or a bystander - is omnipresent when protestors embark into traffic.

"We had received information there was going to be a demonstration at March Lane and Pacific Avenue, and the demonstrators had plans to take over the intersection and block traffic," Officer Joe Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department, said. "Our department was not going to allow this to happen and let demonstrators flagrantly violate the law, which would create major safety issues, not only for the demonstrators but also for vehicles and uninvolved pedestrians in the area."

If there are going to be further protests - over this or any other issues - we urge those involved to take traffic out of the equation. It creates a public safety hazard and, in fact, takes away from the message the protesters are trying to convey.

One other commonality of the two local protests is they were as much about James Rivera as they were about Trayvon Martin.

Rivera was the Stockton teenager fatally shot by Stockton police following a pursuit in July 2010. A report from the district attorney said officers were justified in using deadly force against Rivera. The report concluded that three officers fired a total of 29 shots after they said Rivera, who had crashed a stolen van he was driving into a garage while trying to evade them, put the vehicle into reverse.

Rivera's mother, Dionne Smith-Downs, was very vocal at both protests.

"I'm James Rivera's momma and I hope all of y'all see my face, because I'm not going anywhere. My son's blood is on the streets."

She later added: "Same thing that happened to Trayvon."

While the circumstances of the deaths of Trayvon Martin and James Rivera differ greatly, both of their deaths were tragic.

Deaths of young people have a commonality that was expressed in President Barack Obama's recent speech:

"I think it's important to recognize that the African-American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn't go away," the president said.